From the "Crap You Just Can't Make Up" Files.

Children of the 1970's and 80s should remember Hanna-Barbera's "The Wacky Races" featuring Mutley and a host of other bizarre characters from that company's second-tier. I never though this obscure gem would be the thing that signaled how far into absolute ridiculousness pop culture had descended. But it is! Behold below DC Comics' Mad-Max-style reimagining of "The Wacky Races!"

If you lean toward the screen, you can actually hear the end of civilization approaching~

"The Good Fight" Available on Kindle for Only $2.99!

The Embry Press anthology featuring my short story "The Hero Disease" and other quality stories is only $2.99 through Kindle. One reader referred to my story as, " An insightful look at the superhero in all of us."

Dark Little Dreams Released

This anthology featuring a short story by me was released to a rather positive review in Publishers Weekly. And while the review doesn't mention me, it's an honor to be included in such a high quality collection.

10 REASONS WHY I MAKE A LOUSY FANBOY

1.     I seem to dislike what most of you like. For instance, I despise “Game of Thrones” and barely tolerate the abject stupidity of “The Walking Dead.” I also view “The Big Bang Theory” as a fanboy minstrel show with no redeeming value.

2.     Fan theories are useless, annoying dead air that adds nothing to fandom except a format for human annoyances with far too much free time and a disturbingly over-developed love of retconning.

3.     Genre often bores me to the point where I spend long stretches wanting nothing to do with it.

4.     I regard fan fiction as an abomination. Either create your own stuff or step aside.

5.     The reasons fanboys tend to give for liking something (i.e. “Deadpool” was high-larious!) fall upon deaf ears when it comes to me. Well, maybe not deaf. I hear them. I just wish I didn’t.

6.     Taking sides in some arbitrary “war” between franchises is akin to plantation-era slavery except fanboys should know better.

7.     Cosplay is one of the primary factors in my decision to no longer attend conventions as a consumer; this is not based on a hatred of costuming in general, but a reaction to the pervasive elitist attitudes the increase in its presence has caused.

8.     I don’t believe in brand loyalty in any way shape or form. I have my preferences and my favorites, but I would never choose one or two things to the exclusion of all others. For example, while I prefer “Star Wars,” I can still enjoy “Star Trek.”

9.     I refuse to see sequels to genre films I hated just because fanboy “wisdom” thinks the first film is often a setup for a good movie yet to be made. That’s a level of compromise that relates directly to number 8.

10.  I’m not a close-minded purist. I don’t adhere to a certain version of a character or concept that’s been around for decades and then bitch when someone develops a new interpretation. I like it when my comfort zone is disturbed, which is why I had no problem with the “Star Trek” reboot or “Man of Steel” and its sequel.

 

 

The Year of the Reprint?

I'm starting to think 2016 will indeed be the Year of the Reprint for me. I've already received two copies of "Dark Little Dreams" in the mail featuring my short story, "The Love of a Good Entity" and recently received word that The Horror Zine will be publishing a best of anthology featuring the seemingly undying "Always Say Treat."

The latter collection is still in its infancy so I'll update as details become available. Meanwhile, I cannot endorse the former enough. It is an impressive collection of dark fiction!

Upcoming Anthology Release Cover!

The anthology I wrote about back in September has a cover:

From the website:
"Compiled by Bad Dream Entertainment founder and editor Brett Reistroffer, readers will explore fifteen stories of dark contemporary fiction from the likes of Bram Stoker Award winner Eric J. Guignard, Spanish author Santiago Eximeno, Christopher Nadeau, MP Johnson, Brian Culp, Mark Patrick Lynch, Louis Rakovich, Travis Burnham, Tim Jeffreys, Robert G. Ferrell, Anna Yeatts, Gerri Leen, Jay Seate, and Birney Reed."

My Thoughts on the "Exposure as Payment" Non-troversey.

Basically, people are waking up to the notion that publishers who only offer "exposure" are offering an intangible they can neither guarantee nor quantify. And since there have been no studies I know of detailing the supposed benefits of such an arrangement, it's safe to say at this point exposure remains unmeasured and, sadly, most likely not worth a helluva lot in the long run. This is especially true for writers who actually need money in their bank accounts.

That's not to say I haven't submitted work to publishers who promised exposure. I not only have, but I've also been published by some of them. I've even developed pretty good working relationships with some of them and have sent them stories from time to time when they were short of filling an anthology.  But would I recommend doing it as an ongoing practice in the hopes that there will be some sort of positive outcome beyond seeing one's name on in the table of content? Hell no.

I have known many writers in my time and, while personalities vary sometimes wildly, we all have one thing in common when it comes to our writing: We work our asses off to get it as good as we can. The operative word in that sentence is, of course, work. Imagine interviewing for a job with some company or municipality and being told by the hiring manager how much they look forward to hiring you but just so you know, this is a "for the love" position so it only "pays" in networking opportunities. Would you take it?  Maybe if you were just starting out and needed to get some work experience for your resume. Flash forward a few years or even a decade later: Would you still be willing to accept employment on that basis?

That is, ultimately, the crux of the negativity towards exposure-only markets. Many feel they take advantage of new writers who are so desperate for publication they will gladly give away the result of their sweat and tears. That's probably not an entirely wrong point of view, but a lot of people who get into small publishing do it because of a love for the field and a genuine desire to help writers find outlets for their work. As with most issues, there are not clear cut villains an victims. 

The rise of online publishing has given rise to a glut of publishers trying to maintain their concerns with as little in the way of expenditures as possible.  Not having to pay writers can mean the difference between their websites remaining operational and not.  But as with any piece of decent journalism, what happens when we follow the money? Who exactly is making money off these ventures? It's a sure bet the web designer got paid. If not directly, then through some other back-end means. The same goes for the owner, who surely gets ad revenue and makes money from the hits the site receives.  In some cases, the artists get paid because their work is what often draws readers to the site, despite the fact that the writing keeps them there.

I've worked for people who thought I should have been so giddy over the fact that they were publishing me that I didn't deserve much of anything. I've written for a place that did pay me but then decided it couldn't anymore while still offering to allow me to publish my work for free if I so chose because, apparently, being published is the same as getting paid as far as they're concerned. I know all about the disrespect writers receive, especially in the United States.

So, is exposure a worthy form of "payment?" In the beginning, when I was building a list of published credits, I guess. Now? After having published dozens of short stories and two novels? Again, hell no.

However, to quote the great Obi-Wan Kenobi, "You must do what you feel is right, of course."


*Meanwhile, check out this cartoon.

Author Irony #498,123

Receiving emails that say, in essence:

HI! We're the ones who have rejected your work left and right. How about you contribute to our Kickstarter Campaign so's we can keep doin' it!?

I am MAN! Hear my snore...er, roar!

Not sure how I missed the news of this one coming out, but it did and I am in it not once, but twice with my short story "True Fiction" and my death row-themed flash fiction piece, "Love at last."

Both are previously unpublished and, despite the creepy-ass cover below, neither is a horror story.

Upcoming Annual Anthology Release News.

A while ago, one of my favorite short stories was selected for inclusion in the Bad Dream Entertainment annual anthology titled "Bad Little Dreams." The story was, of course, originally published on their website back in October of 2014.

"The Love of a Good Entity" remains one of my personal best as far as I'm concerned, as it not only melds my older style with my current one but it also ushered in my newer, better approach to storytelling.

You can actually read the story by clicking here.

I'll post further news on the anthology as it becomes available. Right now all I have is a title and a tentative release date of March 2016.

The "Earth-God" Saga Continues in the Virtual Pages of Beyond Science Fiction Issue #10!

The next installment in my "Earth-God Saga" titled "A Darker Trinity Arises" is now available to be read here.